Tafsir of Al-Muddathir 74:38

Al-Muddaththir (The Cloaked One): Verse 38

{Every soul is held in pledge for what it has earned...}

The Commentator of Al-Kashshāf (Al-Zamakhshari) said:

The word رَهِينَة (rahīnah) is not the feminine form of رَهِين (rahīn) found in the verse: {Every man is a pledge for what he has earned} (At-Tur: 21). This is because if the feminine form was intended, it would have been رَهِينَة only if the noun Nafs (soul) required it. However, Fa'īl (like rahīn) used to mean Maf'ūl (passive participle) is the same for both masculine and feminine.

Instead, رَهِينَة here is a noun meaning رَهْن (pledge/collateral), similar to how شَتِيمَة (shatīmah) means شَتْم (shatm, insult).

It is as if the verse means: "Every soul is a pledge (rahn) for what it has earned."

This is supported by the line of poetry from Al-Hamāsa:

This poetical usage implies: "a pledge (rahn) of a grave."

The meaning is: Every soul is pledged to God for its deeds, unable to be freed except for the Companions of the Right Hand (Aṣḥāb al-Yamīn), for they are freed from the bondage of their souls due to their good deeds, just as a mortgagor frees his collateral by paying the debt.

Regarding the identity of the Companions of the Right Hand (Aṣḥāb al-Yamīn), several views have been mentioned:

1. Ibn Abbas said: They are the believers.
2. Al-Kalbī said: They are those about whom God Almighty said: {They will be in Gardens, and I shall not care [about them]}—and they are those who were on Adam's right side.
3. Muqātil said: They are those who receive their records in their right hands, meaning they will not be held in pledge for their sins in the Fire.
4. Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) and Ibn Umar said: They are the children of Muslims.
   • Al-Farrā’ considered this view the most likely to be correct for two reasons:
     • First: Because children have not earned any sin for which they should be held in pledge.
     • Second: Because God described them by saying: {In Gardens, inquiring of the criminals, "What has brought you into Saqar?"} (Al-Muddaththir: 39-41). This questioning is only appropriate for children, as they were unfamiliar with sins, hence their inquiry: {What has brought you into Saqar?} (Al-Muddaththir: 42).
5. Ibn Abbas (another narration) said: They are the angels.

{In Gardens, inquiring of the criminals,} (Al-Muddaththir: 39)